Profile transfer devices



Dec. 16, 1969 F. G. s. ENGLISH 3,433,529

IROFILE TRANSFER DEVICES Filed March 6, 1968 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Dec. 16, 1969 F. G. s. ENGLISH 3,483,629

` PROFILE TRANSFER DEVICES Filed March 6, 1968 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Zwan/TOR:

3,483,629 PRFILE TRANSFER DEVICES Francis Guy Sydenham English, Henield, England, assignor to rlemco Tools Limited, Lancing, Sussex, England, a British body corporate Filed Mar. 6, 1968, Ser. No. 711,064 Claims priority, application Great Britain, Mar. 17, 1967, 12,659/ 67 Int. Cl. Glb /20 lU.S. Cl. 33-175 7 Claims ABSTRACT 0F THE DISCLOSURE A profile transferring device having a row of feeler needles held between upper and lower sets of elongated presser members, the presser members being either captive rods or tubes carried on captive rods, each needle being frictionally engaged by at least two such presser members, and screw-threaded adjustable presser varying means acting on the presser members through resilient strips which determine a lower limit of pressure.

This invention relates to profile transferring devices comprising essentially a holder in which are disposed, in side by side and parallel relationship, a row of feeler needles which can be shifted longitudinally against a frictional holding pressure until the tips of the row of needles have assumed the contour of an article against which they are pressed.

The object of the present invention is to provide an improvement whereby the frictional holding pressure is exerted on each feeler needle at several Zones about its periphery and over a relatively large proportion of its total length, whereby said needles may be extremely firmly held against inadvertent longitudinal shifting.

According to the present invention, a profile transferring device comprises a body structure, a row of feeler needles resting in side by side parallel relationship on support means in said body structure and projecting at both of their ends from the body structure, a row of elongate presser members disposed in side by side parallel relationship in the body structure and with two of them bearing against each needle of the row of feeler needles, stop means on said body structure restricting end-wise movement of the elongate presser members in both directions, and means on the body structure urging the presser members against the feeler needles, such that said feeler needles are held frictionally between the support means and the presser members.

With such an arrangement, each feeler needle is contacted frictionally at three circumferentially spaced zones, and over the length of the elongate presser members for each zone. In order to still further increase the frictional holding of the feeler needles, the support means may be constituted by a second row of elongate members disposed in side by side parallel relationship in the body structure, and likewise having end-wise movement restricted to stop means on the body structure. Such an arrangement thus results in the feeler needles each being contacted frictionally at four circumferentially spaced zones, and over the length of the elongate members.

In order to permit complete withdrawal of one or more feeler needles from the row, without thereby permitting the laterally shiftable elongate members to become disassembled, means may be provided for retaining the elongate members on the body structure in such a manner that they may move laterally within limits. ln a preferred construction, the elongate members are openended tubes, and the means for retaining them on the body structure comprise rods disposed with clearance nited States Patent O ice one within each tube and projecting from each end of the tube for engagement by ange means secured on the body structure.

To facilitate the use of the device, it is advantageous if the frictional pressure exerted on the feeler needles can be varied, such that there may be only a relatively low frictional holding of the needles during their adjustment into a desired contour, and a relatively very much higher frictional holding of the needles, i.e. substantially locking them against inadvertent movement, once they have been set to the desired contour. Accordingly, the means on the body structure for urging the presser members against the feeler needles is preferably made adjustable. It is likewise advantageous if the feeler needles are not permitted to become so freed from frictional holding pressure that they may fall freely out of the body structure. Accordingly, it is also preferred to provide means for determining a lower limit of pressure on the feeler needles.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the means on the body structure for urging the presser members against the feeler needles include resiliently compressible strips, and a pair of these may conveniently be positioned to act on the elongate presser members adjacent to the respective ends of the presser members, a pair of pressure bars being movable in the body structure and `bearing respectively one on each strip, a yoke being engaged with the pressure bars, and adjustable screw-threaded means being provided on the body structure to act on the yoke.

An embodiment of the profile transfer device in accordance with the invention is described with reference to the figures of the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIGURE l is a side elevation of a profile transfer device, one part being shown as sectioned along the line I-I of FIGURE 2, and another part being shown broken away to reveal internal constructional details;

FIGURE 2 is a plan view;

FIGURE 3 is a central transverse section taken approximately on the line III-HI of FIGURE 1.

A set of feeler needles 1 are disposed between an upper row of presser tubes 2 and a lower row of presser flat tubes 3. The lower row of presser tubes 3 rests on horizontal surfaces 4 of a lower tbody member 5. The upper row of presser tubes 2 has resting against it two parallel spaced rubber strips 6 which are in turn abutted by respective pressure bars 7 movable in slots 8 in an upper body member 9. The pressure bars 7 are coupled by a yoke 10 against which bears a sleeve 11 acted upon by a wing-nut 12 threaded onto a bolt 13 engaged through the upper body member 9 and retained by a nut 14 bearing on the yoke 10. The upper body member 9 and the lower 'body member 5 are secured in the relative position shown by screws 15 engaged through end plates 16 and 17 of the body structure.

The pressure applied and adjusted by the wing nut 12 is distributed evenly over the whole length of the rubber strips 6 and thus all the presser tubes 2 and 3 have the same pressure urging them into contact with the feeler needles 1. The minimum pressure applied to the presser tubes 2 by the rubber strips 6, with the wing nut 12 fully loosened, is determined by the degree of tightening of the nut 14 on the bolt 13, because the nut 14 bears on the yoke 10 and acts as a stop.

To hold the rows of presser tubes 2 and 3 freely movable within limits 'but nevertheless captive within the body structure, the latter includes upper and lower pairs of retaining strips 18 secured to the respective body members by screws 19 and each including a flange 20 engaging with a needle 21 disposed with clearance within each presser tube.

The device illustrated is particularly suitable, for eX- ample, for medical work. It is often desirable in such work to be able to use comparatively long feeler needles 1, but nevertheless it must also be possible to apply only a comparatively Very light pressure during adjustment of the needles, whilst obtaining completely iirm holding and locking of the needles when they have been adjusted. The range of variation obtainable by rotation of the Wing nut 12 permits these requirements to be fulfilled.

In medical Work it is also desirable for the feeler needles 1 to be removable for Sterilisation, and for the insertion of other datum needles having a colour signiicance, Without the removal of any one or more needles resulting in disorderly collapse of the row of needles, and this requirement is fullled in that the rubber strips 6 serve to keep each feeler needle 1 adequately under jpressure, irrespective of the presence or absence of neighbouring needles.

Iclaim:

1. A prole transferring device comprising a body structure, needle support means mounted in said body structure, a plurality of eeler needles disposed in a row in side by side relationship on said support means and having both of their ends projecting from the body structure, a plurality of elongated needle presser members disposed in a row in side by side relationship in said tbody structure and with two of said Iplurality of needle presser members abutting against each needle of the row of feeler needles, stop means mounted on said body structure and positioned adjacent each end of the elongated needle presser members to restrict end-wise movement of said needle presser members in both directions longitudinally, and means mounted in said body structure and positioned to abut against the needle presser members to urge said presser members against the feeler needles such that said feeler needles are held frictionally between said support means and said presser members.

2. A prole transferring device, as claimed in claim 1, wherein said support means is constituted by a second plurality of elongated members disposed in the body structure in -a row in side by side parallel relationship, and wherein there is provided second stop means mounted on the body structure and disposed adjacent to the ends of said second elongated members to restrict end-wise movement thereof.

3. A prole transferring device, as claimed in claim 2, comprising retainer means on said body structure engaging with said tirst and second pluralities of elongated members to retain said elongated members in their side by side relationship but permitting lateral movement along the row.

4. A profile transferring device, as claimed in claim 3, wherein said rst and second pluralities of elongated members are tubes, and wherein a plurality of rods are disposed one within and projecting from each end of said tubes, and wherein said retainer means comprise pairs of stop members mounted on the body structure and having opposed inturned flanges with which the projecting ends of said rods engage.

5. A profile transferring device, as claimed in claim 1, wherein said means mounted in said body structure and .positioned to abut against the needle presser members comprises screw-threaded means for adjustment of the pressure of abutment against the needle presser members.

6. A proiile transferring device, as claimed in claim 5, comprising resiliently deformable strips mounted in said body structure and abutting against the needle presser members to determine a lower limit of pressure against said needle presser members.

7. A profile transferring device, as claimed in claim 1, wherein said means mounted in said body structure and positioned to abut against the needle presser members comprises a pair of resiliently compressible strips positioned in the body structure to abut one adjacent each end of the elongated presser members, a pair of presser bars movably mounted in said body structure and abutting one against each strip, a yoke abutting against the presser bars, and adjustable screw-threaded means mounted on said body structure and abutting against said yoke.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 241,241 5/1881 Ruge. 1,261,43 8 4/ 1918 Reinhardt. 2,523,647 9/ 1950 Burk. 2,949,674 8/1960 WeXler.

SAMUEL S. MATTHEWS, Primary Examiner 

